Do most Dems and Reps get a bad rap?

Living in the South, I find that when I think of a Republican (rich or poor) I too often think of someone with a Dixie flag in the window, and NRA and "Original Boyz in the Hood" bumper stickers... Now I work with a couple of guys that are Reps, and share none of those qualities, but I confess when I picture a Republican, from a southerner’s perspective, that is what I envision... So my question to both Reps and Dems is do you agree that most Reps and Dems when viewed by the opposite party, are far too often grouped in the extreme right or left? And secondly, for those that don’t have radical views, does it bother you sometimes that you have to share the same platform with these folks?